Kiyohide Shima

Kiyohide Shima was a Vice Admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. He is primarily remembered for his role as commander of the Second Strike Force during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in October 1944, a command that placed him in a controversial position during the complex Battle of Surigao Strait. His earlier career included command of cruisers and fleets in the Aleutian Islands and Southwest Pacific theaters.

Early life and education

Kiyohide Shima was born on February 25, 1890, in Miyazaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu, Japan. He entered the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy at Etajima in 1907, graduating 45th out of 149 cadets in the 39th class in 1911. Among his notable classmates were future admirals Takeo Kurita and Jisaburō Ozawa. Following his graduation and commissioning as an ensign, Shima underwent the standard training for junior officers, which included service on various warships and specialized courses in torpedo warfare, a branch in which he would later specialize.

Military career

Shima's early career followed the typical path of a naval officer, with postings to cruisers and destroyers. He served as the chief torpedo officer on the battlecruiser ''Kirishima'' and later held his first command, the destroyer ''Kuretake'', in the late 1920s. After graduating from the Naval War College and promotion to captain, he commanded the light cruisers Ōi and Kuma in the early 1930s. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, he commanded the ''Abukuma'' and served in various staff positions.

Promoted to rear admiral in November 1940, Shima's World War II commands were primarily in secondary theaters. He commanded cruiser divisions during the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway. In 1943, he was appointed commander of the 5th Fleet, responsible for the defense of the Aleutian Islands and Kuril Islands. In this role, he led Japanese forces at the Battle of the Komandorski Islands in March 1943, an indecisive surface engagement. Later, he was transferred to command the Second Southern Expeditionary Fleet in the Philippines.

His most famous, and controversial, command came in October 1944 during the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Shima, now a vice admiral, led the modest Second Strike Force (''Nachi'', ''Ashigara'', and several destroyers) as part of the complex Operation Shō-1. His force was to follow the larger Force "C" under Vice Admiral Shōji Nishimura through the Surigao Strait to attack the Allied landing forces in Leyte Gulf. Arriving late at the strait on the night of October 24-25, Shima encountered the wreckage of Nishimura's annihilated fleet. After a brief, ineffective torpedo attack and a minor collision between his own ships, Shima chose to withdraw without pressing the attack, a decision later heavily criticized by the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff.

Post-war life and legacy

After the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Shima was reassigned to command the Chinkai Guard District in Korea. His final wartime post was with the Naval General Staff in Tokyo. He survived the war and was interrogated by U.S. Naval intelligence as part of the United States Strategic Bombing Survey. Unlike many of his peers, Shima was not prosecuted for war crimes by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East. He lived a quiet life after the war and died on November 7, 1973. Historians often assess his performance at Surigao Strait as hesitant, contributing to the comprehensive Allied victory in the last major battleship engagement in history. His career is frequently studied in contrast to the aggressive tactics of admirals like Takeo Kurita and the fatalistic resolve displayed in operations such as Operation Ten-Go. Category:Imperial Japanese Navy admirals Category:World War II naval commanders